Scottish Executive

Air Passenger Duty

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make any additional assistance available to Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd in order to enable the company to reduce the standard tariff landing charges at Inverness Airport and, if so, whether such assistance will enable such charges to be reduced to the levels of airports at Glasgow, Edinburgh or London Heathrow.

Lewis Macdonald: Charges at the airports operated by Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd, and grant to the company, will continue to be set at levels which will ensure the maintenance of essential air services.

Air Passenger Duty

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether a reduction of landing charges at Inverness Airport would support promotion of the tourism industry and, in particular, increase the number of visitors travelling to Inverness Airport.

Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive’s support to Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd already ensures the maintenance of air services which provide tourism access to the Highlands.

Architecture

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-23591 by Dr Elaine Murray on 7 March 2002, whether the annual Scottish award for the best publicly funded building will be awarded this year; what consultation there will be as to whether an award should be granted this year; whether the award will be open to those buildings in respect of which a certificate of completion is granted in the year of the award and, if not, what other criteria will be applied for eligibility for nomination.

Dr Elaine Murray: I indicated in my earlier answer of 7 March that how to take this forward is currently under consideration. That remains the position. However, I have decided that a Scottish award will not be initiated this year.

Charities

Mr Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many registered charities there were in each (a) parliamentary constituency and (b) local authority area at 31 March in each of the past three years.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Scottish Executive does not hold the information requested. The Inland Revenue maintains a database of registered charities and at the end of February 2002 there were 30,197 charities registered in Scotland. The distribution of these by constituency or local authority is information that is not held centrally.

Childcare

Margaret Smith (Edinburgh West) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how it is promoting breakfast clubs.

Cathy Jamieson: The Scottish Executive supports the development of breakfast clubs in a number of ways.

  Childcare Strategy funding (£16.75 million in 2002-03) is allocated to local authorities who, with Childcare Partnerships, make decisions on its disbursement to meet local childcare needs. The Executive has allocated an additional £8 million to local authorities as part of the Childcare Strategy funding over 2001-04 to help support and stabilise fragile out of school care provision, including breakfast clubs.

  New Community Schools have the twin aims of promoting social inclusion and raising educational standards in Scotland. Many New Community Schools have been involved in setting up breakfast clubs where there is perceived need.

  One of the priorities identified for the Health Improvement Fund, which has allocated £26 million per annum towards improving public health until 2003-04, is improving the diet of children. This includes supporting the provision of breakfast clubs.

Children in Care

Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how it aims to ensure that looked after young people receive adequate levels of care and support on leaving the care system.

Cathy Jamieson: We are committed to improving the quality of provision for the throughcare and aftercare of children and young people looked after by local authorities. A working group has been examining how local authorities can best provide a one stop shop approach for advice and assistance to care leavers. Their final report is due to be submitted to me in the near future.

Communities

Janis Hughes (Glasgow Rutherglen) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to increase community engagement in public services in order to ensure that such services are meeting the needs of communities.

Iain Gray: We believe that by increasing community engagement in the planning and delivery of public services we will deliver improved service outcomes that better meet the needs of communities. The Better Neighbourhood Services Fund gives £90 million over three years to local authorities to work with communities to deliver services and to identify local outcome targets. We have also recently published proposals in respect of community budgeting and invited views on a requirement to engage communities in the community planning process. The forthcoming Community Regeneration Statement will say more about our policy in this area.

Digital Hearing Aids

Mr Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what specific funding it has made, or plans to make, available to Highland NHS Board for audiology services and for the recruitment and training of NHS staff for the diagnosis and fitting of digital hearing aids to patients in the area.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: At national level the health budget will rise from £5.9 billion this year to £6.9 billion in 2003-04, representing around one third of the total Scottish Executive budget. It is important that local NHS boards and trusts are able to take decisions about the allocation of the resources at local level to meet local needs and priorities.

  The wide-ranging review of audiology services commissioned by the Executive will monitor the extent of the implementation of the guidance, and will provide robust evidence and recommendations on how NHSScotland should address shortfalls identified. The review will provide an initial profile of staffing and training in March ahead of its final report in the autumn.

Drug Misuse

Mr Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been (a) charged with and (b) convicted of cannabis possession in each of the past three years.

Dr Richard Simpson: The available information is given in the table. Figures for the number of prosecutions and convictions for the possession of cannabis cannot, from the information held by the Scottish Executive, be separately identified within the total number of prosecutions and convictions where the main offence was the possession of drugs. However, it is possible to estimate this proportion for convictions from the latest available Home Office data.

  Persons proceeded against in Scottish courts where the main offence was the possession of drugs, 1998-2000

  


Year 
  

Number of persons proceeded against 
  

Persons with a charge proved 
  



Number 
  

Percentage relating to cannabis1


Percentage involving other charges2




1998 
  

5,930 
  

5,291 
  

75 
  

9 
  



1999 
  

5,486 
  

4,841 
  

72 
  

7 
  



2000 
  

4,707 
  

4,099 
  

75 
  

8 
  



  Notes:

  1. Estimated from Home Office data.

  2. Percentage of these convictions where a charge was proved for at least one other type of offence. Excludes additional charges proved for motoring and other miscellaneous offences.

Energy Conservation

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking in order to encourage domestic energy conservation.

Iain Gray: Under the Home Energy Conservation Act local authorities work with other agencies in the public, private and voluntary sectors to improve home energy efficiency. The Scottish Executive’s first HECA progress report for the period April 1997 to March 1999 was published in May 2001. Copies are held in the Parliament Reference Centre. A second HECA progress report covering the period April 1999 to March 2001 will be published later this year.

Enterprise

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what action will be taken to secure continued manufacturing at the Rolls Royce plant in Hillington, Glasgow.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Along with officials at the Executive and Scottish Development International, I have been in regular close contact with Rolls Royce over a number of months. We are working hard to ensure that this important company continues to develop its manufacturing presence in Scotland.

Environment Act 1995

Mr Andrew Welsh (Angus) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether sections 93 and 94 of the Environment Act 1995 provide for the power to introduce a statutory instrument for deposit-refund systems and, if so, what the limits of any such power are.

Ross Finnie: It is likely that sections 93 and 94 do provide a power to introduce a deposit-refund scheme. The detail of proposed scheme would have to be examined to determine whether its introduction would fall within devolved competence. It would also need to be considered in the light of EC and domestic law on competition and the sale and supply of goods.

Gaelic

Maureen Macmillan (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to support Gaelic-speaking teachers and enable them to teach their subject in Gaelic.

Mike Watson: The Executive is working closely with education authorities to ensure all teachers have the support they need to teach effectively. In particular, we support a course at Sabhal Mor Ostaig specifically designed to enable Gaelic-speaking teachers to teach their subject through the medium of. In addition, the Executive is providing £160,000 a year to Storlann for the provision of educational materials in Gaelic.

Health

Elaine Smith (Coatbridge and Chryston) (Lab): To ask the First Minister what action is being taken in order to ensure the adequate provision of paediatric specialists throughout Scotland.

Mr Jack McConnell: NHS boards are responsible for deciding the number of consultants employed locally. They are best placed to determine the staff needed to meet demands in their areas. However, the Scottish Executive carry out an annual review of the Specialist Registrar establishment with the Scottish Council for Postgraduate Medical and Dental Education. The review determines the number of higher specialist training posts to be made available for each speciality to fill consultant vacancies in the future.

Health

Nicola Sturgeon (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many community nurses, midwives and health visitors have yet to receive a mobile phone, hands-free kit and emergency software under the initiative announced by the Scottish Office on 22 March 1999.

Malcolm Chisholm: The funding for this initiative was allocated on 20 December 1999. As a result and based on local assessment of need, the number of mobile phones available to community nurses, midwives and health visitors at that time more than trebled from approximately 1200 to over 3800.

Health

Trish Godman (West Renfrewshire) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what new provisions it is making for respite and palliative care for children.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: The provision of respite and palliative care is the responsibility of local authorities and NHS boards to be determined in line with local need.

  In 1999 the Scottish Executive doubled the funds available to local authorities for respite care and the support of carers from £5 million per year to £10 million through the Strategy for Carers. The Executive has made available additional resources, rising to £11 million per year, in response to the Royal Commission Report on Long Term Care. By 2003-04 this should increase respite provision across Scotland by 22,000 weeks a year.

  In 2001 a report Palliative Care for Young People Aged 13 – 24 years provided guidance on helping young people through life threatening and life limiting illness. The next round of funding from the New Opportunities Fund will aim to further develop palliative care for children and adults. I recently announced a grant of £1 million to support the development of a second children’s hospice in Scotland.

Health

Cathy Peattie (Falkirk East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people are currently diagnosed as suffering from osteoporosis.

Malcolm Chisholm: This information is not held centrally in the form requested. However, it is estimated from information derived from the Continuous Morbidity Recording (CMR) system, that approximately 17,000 people in Scotland were seen by General Practitioners in respect of osteoporosis in Scotland, in the year ending March 2001 (latest figures available).

  CMR data are obtained from a sample of Scottish General Practices whose population is broadly nationally representative. The above information is based on the activity of 54 Scottish General Practices with a combined population of 345,292.

Health Spending

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when information relating to health spending on specific priorities in the forthcoming financial year will be made available.

Malcolm Chisholm: NHS boards were notified of their allocations to meet the health care needs of their resident populations in 2002-03 on 7 February. It is for boards to decide how best to meet national and local priorities from within the funds available. Details of NHS boards’ expenditure in 2002-03 will be available from board annual accounts. The recently introduced Performance Assessment Framework will deliver a systematic and consistent assessment of performance in the NHS, including those on specific priorities.

Hospital-Acquired Infections

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients in each NHS hospital in Forth Valley contracted hospital-acquired infections in each of the past three years.

Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not held centrally.

Housing

Paul Martin (Glasgow Springburn) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what guarantees Glasgow Housing Association has given on service charges to current council tenants should there be a yes vote in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot.

Ms Margaret Curran: If tenants vote yes in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot, the Glasgow Housing Association has guaranteed that service charges will go up by no more than inflation for each of the first five years after transfer.

Housing

Paul Martin (Glasgow Springburn) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what guarantees Glasgow Housing Association has given on routine repairs to properties transferring to it should there be a yes vote in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot.

Ms Margaret Curran: If tenants vote yes in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot, the Glasgow Housing Association (GHA) will put into operation a published repairs and maintenance policy including timescales for different types of repairs. From day one, the GHA will instigate an appointment system that will carry out all repairs that are currently suspended by the council.

Housing

Gordon Jackson (Glasgow Govan) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what up-grading to current council properties in Glasgow will be made under the new Glasgow Standard should there be a yes vote in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot.

Ms Margaret Curran: If tenants vote yes in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot, the Glasgow standard will ensure that Glasgow Housing Association’s homes are safe and structurally sound, secure, with modern kitchens and bathrooms, warm, dry, dampfree with affordable central heating and energy efficient. The Glasgow standard will include specialist works to multi storey blocks and non-traditional houses, remodelling of houses, security measures, improvements to common areas and environmental works.

Housing

Gordon Jackson (Glasgow Govan) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive over what timescale modernisation to current council properties in Glasgow under the Glasgow Standard will be completed should there be a yes vote in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot.

Ms Margaret Curran: If tenants vote yes in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot, every home with a long-term life will be fully modernised to the Glasgow Standard within 10.5 years of transfer.

Housing

Mr Frank McAveety (Glasgow Shettleston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what evidence it has that the proposal for transferring Glasgow City Council’s housing stock will be funded should there be a yes vote in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot.

Ms Margaret Curran: The City Council and the Glasgow Housing Association (GHA) have had detailed discussions with funders to ensure that the commitments given to tenants could be delivered. Letters of support from a number of financial institutions active in the social rented housing market have been received for the GHA proposal. If tenants vote yes in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot, the Executive is satisfied that the proposal will attract competitive offers of funding from the financial markets and deliver for tenants.

Housing

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what monitoring will be undertaken of the Glasgow Housing Association’s housing allocation policy should there be a yes vote in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot for tenants.

Ms Margaret Curran: If tenants vote yes in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot, Communities Scotland, as the statutory regulator of Registered Social Landlords will be responsible for monitoring of the Glasgow Housing Association’s housing allocation policy.

Housing

Janis Hughes (Glasgow Rutherglen) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what arrangements will be put in place to ensure that Glasgow City Council is able to meet its statutory obligations under homeless legislation should there be a yes vote in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot.

Ms Margaret Curran: If tenants vote yes in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot, statutory responsibility for homelessness will remain with the city council who will carry out case work, homelessness assessments and provide an out of hours service. The city council will also retain ownership of existing hostels and will continue with their hostel decommissioning programme.

  The Glasgow Housing Association will be expected, as a condition of sale, to provide a specific number of properties for homeless people - temporary and permanent housing.

Housing

Janis Hughes (Glasgow Rutherglen) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any special arrangements will be made to meet the requirements of Glasgow’s older council tenants should there be a yes vote in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot.

Ms Margaret Curran: If tenants vote yes in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot, Glasgow’s older tenants will receive enhanced home security packages including effective and well designed door and window locks, viewers and intercoms.

Housing

Janis Hughes (Glasgow Rutherglen) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps will be taken to ensure that owner occupiers in Glasgow will be able to participate in any resulting improvement works should there be a yes vote in the Glasgow housing stock transfer ballot.

Ms Margaret Curran: Following transfer of housing from a local authority to a registered social landlord, the Scottish Executive will make resources available to councils to offer grant assistance to owner occupiers in respect of the costs of repairs to common areas in shared properties. The detailed arrangements of the grant scheme are being progressed.

Local Government Expenditure

Angus MacKay (Edinburgh South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what financial assistance is to be made available to City of Edinburgh Council for expenditure incurred following the subsidence in the Ferniehill area of the city in early 2001.

Mr Andy Kerr: I am pleased to announce that City of Edinburgh Council is eligible for a payment of £646,841 under the Bellwin Scheme. The scheme was activated on 1 August 2001 following representation from the council on costs directly associated with the immediate aftermath of the subsidence, due to the collapse of old limestone workings, in the Ferniehill area in early 2001.

  City of Edinburgh Council’s costs were primarily revenue costs for evacuation of people from their homes, emergency work to safeguard buildings and the reinstatement of local roads.

Ministerial Correspondence

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what its performance has been in the third and fourth quarters of 2001 in answering ministerial correspondence.

Ms Patricia Ferguson: In the answer given to question S1W-12163, my colleague, Tom McCabe undertook to report quarterly on the numbers of letters received by ministers and our performance in answering them.

  In the third quarter of 2001, July to September, 3,471 letters were received for ministerial reply of which 64% received a reply within 17 working days; and 81% received a reply within 25 working days. This performance is similar to the second quarter when 64% of letters received a reply within 17 working days and 82% received a reply within 25 working days and an improvement on the first quarter of 2001 when 60% and 79% of letters respectively received replies within 17 and 25 working days.

  In the fourth quarter of 2001, October to December, 3,560 letters were received for ministerial reply of which 69% received a reply within 17 working days; and 86% received a reply within 25 working days. This is an improved performance on the third quarter. In the last quarter of 2000 only 39% of letters received a reply within 17 working days. There has been a continuous improvement in performance over all four quarters of 2001, but partly because of the ministerial changes in November and partly because of other pressures on some departments in the Executive the targets of 80% and 100% for the most recent quarter have not been met.

  I have decided to retain the same targets for 2002 and I shall continue to report performance quarterly.

NHS Waiting Lists

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide additional resources to all NHS boards to help with the increased waiting lists for tonsillectomies following the postponement of this procedure.

Malcolm Chisholm: The National Waiting Times Unit expects NHS boards to be targeting the lengthy waits for routine tonsil and adenoid surgery which have built up, whilst concerns over patient health and safety and issues around surgical instruments were resolved.

  The unit is currently assessing NHS boards’ Local Health Plans to determine how best to distribute additional funding to tackle waiting in 2002-03. It may fund specific initiatives to help reduce the number of patients awaiting routine tonsil and adenoid surgery depending on the capacity in each NHS board area.

NHS Waiting Times

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it has taken in order to reduce waiting times for tonsillectomies.

Malcolm Chisholm: Concerns over patient health and safety and issues, around surgical instruments used in routine tonsil and adenoid surgery, have now been resolved and surgery recommenced with effect from 11 March. I expect NHS boards to be taking local action to get waiting for these routine procedures down to acceptable levels as quickly as possible.

  In addition, the National Waiting Times Unit has identified reducing waiting for routine tonsil and adenoid surgery as one of its priorities for action. The unit is currently assessing NHS boards’ Local Health Plans to determine how best to tackle waiting in 2002-03.

NHS Waiting Times

Mr John McAllion (Dundee East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time has been for a patient in the Tayside NHS Board area to be seen for an assessment for use of a powered wheelchair in (a) 1999-2000, (b) 2000-01 and (c) 2001-02 to date.

Mr John McAllion (Dundee East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there have been any reductions in the frequency of assessment clinics for the use of powered wheelchairs at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee and what assessment has been made of the health impact of any such reductions.

Mr John McAllion (Dundee East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients in the Tayside NHS board area were waiting to be assessed for the use of a powered wheelchair at 31 January in (a) 2000, (b) 2001 and (c) 2002.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: The information requested in this question, and questions S1W-24137 and S1W-24138 today, is not held centrally and should be obtained directly from Tayside University Hospital NHS Trust.

  The Rehabilitation Technology Information System (RetIS) has been established to support delivery of high quality care to patients by gathering information from across Scotland. RetIS plan to collect this level of detailed information with effect from 2002-03.

Oil and Gas Industry

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many meetings of the Pilot oil and gas industry task force there have been in each year since it was created.

Lewis Macdonald: There were four Pilot meetings in each of 2000 and 2001, and so far this year there have been two meetings. More information is available on the Pilot website at:

  http://www.pilottaskforce.co.uk.

Oil and Gas Industry

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether Pilot or its associated groups have mapped the fallow acreage in the UK Continental Shelf and whether it will publish details of any such mapping.

Lewis Macdonald: I understand that Pilot has not itself mapped the fallow acreage, but there are an estimated 120 fallow discoveries and 160 fallow blocks on the UKCS. In due course, details of the fallow assets will be placed on the LIFT (Licence Information for Trading) website.

Pensions

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will next have discussions with the Department for Work and Pensions.

Iain Gray: The Scottish Executive is in regular contact with the UK Government on a wide range of issues.

Police

Mr John Home Robertson (East Lothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will announce the additional targets set for the police service as notified by the Deputy First Minister and Minister for Justice in May 2001.

Mr Jim Wallace: Additional targets, covering serious violent crime and vehicle crime, have been arrived at following detailed consultation with the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland and the Convenors of police authorities. These new targets are being set for the Scottish police to achieve by the year 2003-04.

  All of the police targets are intended to build on local plans and existing strategies and to provide a national focus for key areas. The Vehicle Crime target also encompasses the existing national target for car crime set by the UK Government in September 1998.

  These new targets are as follows:

  Serious Violent Crime 

  A reduction in the number of recorded incidents of serious violent crime of five per cent.

  An increase in the detection rate of serious violent crime of 4.1 percentage points.

  Vehicle Crime

  A reduction in the number of recorded incidents of vehicle crime of 17%.

Prison Service

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will comment on the report by the Auditor General for Scotland in Appendix 13 of the Scottish Prison Service’s Annual Report and Accounts 2000-01 .

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Annual Report and Accounts for 2000-01 fully disclose the accounting policies which SPS has complied with in accordance with Government and Accounting Standards requirements.

  The Auditor General for Scotland has confirmed that SPS complied fully with the current accounting guidance.

Procurator Fiscal Service

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has for the development of the service provided from the Procurator Fiscal Service office in Stranraer.

Colin Boyd QC: Earlier this month and following the completion of a management review, I announced a wide-ranging modernisation of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service with the specific aim of improving the quality of the service delivered to the public. Significant additional resources are to be made available. Consultation on the recommendations in the management review report is currently under way and due to be concluded at the end of April. At this stage it is too early to indicate precisely how the service provided at Stranraer will be developed.

Public Transport

Kay Ullrich (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will bring forward legislation to ensure that all forms of public transport are accessible to people with physical impairments.

Lewis Macdonald: The regulatory powers in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 require all new land based public transport vehicles to be accessible to disabled people are reserved for the UK Parliament.

Renewable Energy

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what specific measures it has taken, or plans to take, to ensure that indigenous companies are well placed to compete for manufacturing opportunities in the renewable energy sector.

Lewis Macdonald: We work closely with Scottish Enterprise to help Scottish companies working in the area of renewable energy to grow, and to encourage diversification of other companies into the manufacturing opportunities which are already arising in Scotland from development of renewable energy sources under the forthcoming Renewables Obligation (Scotland). We will continue to back our own renewables industry, to attract new investment to Scotland, and to persuade Scottish businesses to capitalise on this new business opportunity.

Roads

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what work is to be carried out in order to repair and resurface the single track sections of the A830; by what date any such work will be carried out, and whether BEAR (Scotland) Ltd will consult Mallaig Community Council in connection with these matters.

Lewis Macdonald: A structural maintenance scheme has been identified for implementation this autumn. The precise nature and scope of the works is currently under investigation and will be finalised during the design period over the summer months. A consultation exercise involving Mallaig Community Council will be undertaken to ascertain the optimum timing for the road closures. It is anticipated that in order to keep disruption to a minimum, the road closures will take place outwith the tourist season.

  An interim strategy to undertake urgent repairs and increase the frequency of safety inspections has also been formulated to ensure road safety is maintained until the above scheme is implemented.

Science

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what support it is giving to National Science Week and Science Year.

Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Executive is providing £115,600 (2001-02) in support of Science Year. This includes funding for a Science Year Co-ordinator whose role is to promote events, activities and initiatives throughout Scotland.

  National Science Week (8 to 17 March) is co-ordinated by the BA (formerly the British Association for the Advancement of Science) and funded by the Office of Science and Technology. Over 60 science events were advertised as taking place in Scotland.

  The Scottish Executive has allocated an additional £5 million to Education Authorities, which has been ring fenced for science activities and resources in support of the Science Strategy for Scotland.

Scottish Executive Expenditure

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list each level one expenditure line in its total annual budget as a percentage of GDP in each year for which figures are available.

Mr Andy Kerr: The table shows Budget as a percentage of GDP for each major portfolio:

  


Level 1 
  

2000-1 original plan 
  

2001-02 original plan 
  

2002-03 plan 
  

2003-04 plan 
  



Central Government support for Local Authorities 
  

7.87 
  

8.06 
  

8.58 
  

8.70 
  



Children and Central Government Education 
  

0.31 
  

0.38 
  

0.26 
  

0.24 
  



Crown Office 
  

0.07 
  

0.07 
  

0.07 
  

0.07 
  



Enterprise and Lifelong Learning 
  

2.60 
  

2.69 
  

2.48 
  

2.43 
  



Environment 
  

0.57 
  

0.63 
  

0.66 
  

0.67 
  



EU funds 
  

0.22 
  

0.21 
  

0.24 
  

0.16 
  



Forestry 
  

0.11 
  

0.10 
  

0.10 
  

0.10 
  



Health 
  

7.20 
  

7.54 
  

7.81 
  

7.92 
  



Justice 
  

0.80 
  

0.82 
  

0.88 
  

0.84 
  



Rural Affairs 
  

0.73 
  

0.77 
  

0.72 
  

0.73 
  



Scottish Executive Administration 
  

0.26 
  

0.26 
  

0.26 
  

0.25 
  



Scottish Executive Associated Departments 
  

0.03 
  

0.04 
  

0.03 
  

0.02 
  



Scottish Parliament and Audit Scotland 
  

0.08 
  

0.12 
  

0.18 
  

0.12 
  



Scottish Public Pensions Agency 
  

0.38 
  

0.34 
  

0.28 
  

0.33 
  



Social Justice 
  

0.74 
  

0.88 
  

0.88 
  

0.95 
  



Sport and culture 
  

0.20 
  

0.21 
  

0.21 
  

0.20 
  



Transport 
  

1.06 
  

1.22 
  

1.28 
  

1.33 
  



Total 
  

23.25 
  

24.48 
  

25.03 
  

25.19

Scottish Executive Expenditure

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what its total annual budget has been as a percentage of GDP in each year for which figures are available.

Mr Andy Kerr: The total annual budget as a percentage of GDP is shown in the table:

  





2000-01 original plan 
  

2001-02 original plan 
  

2002-03 plan 
  

2002-03 plan 
  



Total Budget as % GDP 
  

23.25 
  

24.48 
  

25.03 
  

25.19

Social Justice

Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking in order to tackle financial exclusion and ensure that everyone has access to basic financial services.

Iain Gray: The Scottish Executive is working with partners in the financial sector and others, to encourage the development of new and alternative means to deliver financial services, as well as ensuring existing services can reach whole communities.

Social Justice

Helen Eadie (Dunfermline East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it is making towards reaching its goals on community regeneration.

Iain Gray: Progress is reported yearly in our Social Justice Annual Report , which was published in November 2001. There is still much to do and it is important that we keep our approach to community regeneration under review and that we continue to learn from experience. We will set out further details of our future priorities and approach in our community regeneration statement, which we will publish shortly.

Special Educational Needs

Rhona Brankin (Midlothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how it plans to improve the assessment and provision of education services for young people with special educational needs.

Cathy Jamieson: The Scottish Executive’s proposals for improvement are set out in our response to the consultation on Assessing our children’s educational needs - the Way Forward . This was published on 19 February 2002.

Substance Abuse

Mr Keith Raffan (Mid Scotland and Fife) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how it is tackling abuse of volatile substances.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: Volatile substance abuse is addressed within Scotland's drugs strategy. Drug Action Teams (DATs) are asked to include it in their corporate action plans. According to the 2000-01 DAT Corporate Planning exercise, there are 99 drug agencies in Scotland which provide a service for volatile substance abusers.

  The Executive's investment of an additional £13 million over three years for drug treatment will ensure an expansion of services, including those catering for volatile substance abusers. Organisations supported by the Executive produce materials which address the risks of volatile substance abuse. For example, in 2000, the Scottish Drugs Forum and the Health Education Board for Scotland collaborated with others to publish Volatile Substance Abuse - Guidance for Professionals, produced in support of new legislation which prohibits the sale of butane gas lighter refills to under 18s.